Posted on 04/02/2012 3:27:33 PM PDT by Dallas59
Kimberly Hester, a grade school teacher's aide in Michigan, was fired for refusing to hand over her Facebook password to her supervisors. Hester posted a picture of a co-workers' shoes and pants bunched around her ankles on Facebook in April 2011 with the caption, "Thinking of you." She posted the picture in jest, but a parent who's on her Facebook friend list saw the image and reported it to Frank Squires Elementary where Hester was employed, prompting the investigation.
Teachers have gotten in trouble for Facebook status messages before, but in Hester's case, it's her refusal to hand over her password that actually got her fired. One of the supervisors from the Lewis Cass Intermediate School District (ISD), the regional service center for education in Michigan, even wrote her a letter when she refused to give them her password for the third time. Part of the letter read: "... in the absence of you voluntarily granting Lewis Cass ISD administration access to you[r] Facebook page, we will assume the worst and act accordingly." Lewis Cass wanted to put Hester on a paid administrative leave before they fired her, but she chose to go on an unpaid leave because she believes she did nothing wrong. She plans to use the letter she received to sue the school district.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
No, it couldn't be her own actions that had anything to do with this.
Could it?
Where is this insanity coming from? Why should anyone ever have to hand over their Facebook passwords - or passwords to anything else? How about email passwords next? Passwords to favorite political forums?
I'm not sure where to begin? The teacher's aide for posting the picture on facebook..... The parent that ratted her out....the supervisor that demanded the password....or the idiot that put it in writing stating she was fired for not handing over her facebook password.
These people teach children.......be afraid.
If she posted to Facebook from school/school computer, she might be liable.
If she posted to Facebook from elsewhere, she call tell them to suck eggs, and sue them for wrongful termination.
“...but in Hester’s case, it’s her refusal to hand over her password that actually got her fired.”
Do you think that is okay?
Would it have ever come up if she hadn't posted pics of co-workers?
Personal responsibility is a bitch.
You didn’t answer the question.
Is there a way to know which computer the pic came from? I’m sure that I heard someone at Sheriff Joe’s BC presser say that they could tell which computer in the White Crib created and put up the phony BC. Do computers leave electronic footprints?
Prove it! Those shoes and pants could belong to anyone.
What is wrong with the stupid parent for complaining about something like this? Surely there must be more to this story....
I figure people who post crap about their workplace where anyone can see it are stupid.
If that stupidity has consequences, then fine, I hope they learn from it.
Is that answer enough for you?
Depending on her settings, not anyone can see it. Thus her employer asking for her login.
No reason to be a smart ass.
IP address
I guess this will depend on what’s in her employment agreement.
I think of an online presence as private property, being asked to relinquish that without a court order is suspect.
I wonder if they or the person pictured asked her to remove it first?
Some parents complain about anything at all. When I was a Youth Leader for my church, I received a phone call from the Associate Pastor asking about my Myspace page and expressing concern if there was anything inappropriate on it. Turns out a parent had gone on to my page and a liquor ad popped up (that Myspace put on in their ad banner, not me). So the parent called the Pastor expressing great concern that I was “promoting” alcohol to the teens in the Youth Group. When of course I wouldn’t do anything at all like that, nor could I choose which ads were placed on the site. So yes, I got the blame for this supposed “pushing of alcohol”. It happens. And yes, parents will call on it.
“Personal responsibility is a bitch.”
________________________________________
Yes, but this story is quite confusing as it seems to go beyond a simple infraction of posting an improper photo, in which case she could be subject to whatever punishment.
What does her password have to do with anything?
It would be like demanding the password to my Email accounts,
in which case I would tell them to go suck an egg.
From the terms of service...
You will not share your password, (or in the case of developers, your secret key), let anyone else access your account, or do anything else that might jeopardize the security of your account.
—Passwords to favorite political forums?—
There is a semblance of anonymity there anyway. I know it’s easy enough to find out if they really want to, but if they asked for my password I would say “Cuban leaf? Who’s that?”
I have two facebook accounts. One has no friends at all. :-)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.